Safety bottle breaker



Aug. 1, 1939. w HEB 2,168,226

SAFETY BOTTLE BREAKER Filed Dec. 19, 1938 INVE TOR. Mal/3cm Patented Aug. 1, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFECE 2,168,226 SAFETY BOTTLE BREAKER William Lieb, Detroit, Mich. p Application December 19, 1938, Serial No. 246,540 5 Claims. c .s3 9s) My invention relates to a bottle breaker and my object is to provide a device for breaking bottles that are to be destroyed to prevent refilling.

The device is in the nature of a box or cabinet, adapted to be mounted in any convenient place, and within which the bottle to be broken may be placed and broken and the breakage removed, with perfect safety to the user.

For an understanding of my bottle breaker, I refer to the appended drawing and the following specification.

In this drawing,

Fig. 1 is a front view of one embodiment of my invention;

Figs. 2 and 3 are sections as if on corresponding lines of Figs. 3 and 2 Figs. 4 and 6 are sections as if on corresponding lines of Fig. 5 of a second embodiment;

Fig. 5 is a side View of the breaker of Figs. 4 and 6.

The bottle breaker of Figs. 1-3 comprises a cabinet I 5} within whose lower portion is received a sliding drawer H-having a front 12 forming a closure for the front opening through which slides the drawer, there being a handle at 83 on such drawer front. 7

Above the drawer front I2 is an opening i i, covering which is a vertically slidable shutter i5 having a handle at l6. Behind the opening M is a hammer ll mounted on the lower end of a hammer rod 98 slidably disposed in a bearing I9 provided at, the upper end of the casing or cabinet Iii, whereby the hammer is vertically slidable. The hammer is so shaped that its rear edge, indicated at 26, is fiat so as to be closely adjacent the rear surface of the cabinet in a manner to prevent rotation of the hammer and its rod during the sliding of the hammer.

Between the hammer ll and the drawer II is an anvil 2| mounted on a cross shaft 22 supported in bearings 23 and 24 at the back and front of the cabinet respectively. The front end of the cross shaft projects through the front of the cabinet and terminates in a handle '25 which permits the user to rotate the anvil so as to present either one of its two grooved surfaces 26 to the grooved surface 21 of the hammer, whereby a bottle 28 thrust into the cabinet through the opening l4 may be deposited upon the anvil in position to be engaged by the hammer and broken thereby.

For indexing the anvil in either one of its two positions, there is provided between the front end of the anvil and the front of the cabinet a stationary plate 30 against whose rear surface 4 is adapted to ride the front ends of the indexing pins 35 disposed in recesses in the front of the anvil and spring pressed towards the indexing plate 30- by springs 32 within these recesses. During the rotation of the anvil both pins 3i ride along the rear surface of the plate Bil until one of them reaches the cross hole 33 in the plate 3%, whereupon, due to the spring behind it, that pin will project itself into such cross hole and thus restrain the anvil against further rotation. To release the pin in the cross hole 33 from the disk 3!! and thus to permit rotation of the anvil once more, there-is provided in the front of the cabinet a plunger 35 whose rear end is constantly seated within the cross hole 33' and which may-be pushed inwardly enough to push the pin 3! out of such cross hole and thus permit the anvil to be rotated by the handle. In the embodimentillustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 there is provided, on the upper end of the hammer rod !8, a knob Ali! by means of which the hammer may be grasped and raised to permit a bottle to be placed on the anvil. The hammer may be released upon release of the knob ii; and,

upon the dropping of the hammer after such release, will smash and break the bottle resting on the anvil, after which the user may press the plunger 34 and rotate the handle 25 to empty the breakage into the drawer II and to present to the hammer a second surface of the anvil 21, such operation being repeated as often as necessary. I

In the construction shown in Figs. 4 to6, a compressionspring 50 is disposed between the hammer H and the bearing I9 around the harm mer rod 8 to bias the hammer downwardly. For raising the hammer there is provided a pull cord arrangement comprising a pull cord 5: passed around pulleys 52 and terminating in a handle block 53 slidably mounted on the side of the casing in guides 54. The handle block 52 may be pulled down to raise the hammer H and compress the spring I 5 and may then be released to permit the combined action of the weight of the hammer and the compressed spring 5!] to force the hammer l1 down to break the bottle then resting on the anvil.

Now having described the bottle breaker herein disclosed, reference will be had to the claims which follow for a determination of the invention.

I claim:

1. A bottle breaker comprising a cabinet having an opening in its front adapted to be closed by 55 a movable shutter, an anvil within the casing and disposed horizontally adjacent the opening in position to receive a bottle thrust into the cabinet through the opening, a hammer above the anvil provided with means for raising it and adapted to move downwardly, upon release of such means by the operator, to strike a bottle positioned on the anvil and to break it, the anvil having two opposed bottle receiving surfaces formed for satisfactory reception of a bottle, and being mounted to be rotatable on a horizontal axis so as to present either of these two surfaces selectively to the hammer, a handle on the front of the cabinet for rotating the anvil, and means for indexing the anvil in either of its two positions, the means being self-locking and being personally manipulable for release.

2. A bottle breaker comprising a cabinet having an opening in its front adapted tobe closed by a movable shutter, an anvil within the casing and disposed horizontally adjacent the opening in position to receive a bottle thrust into the cabinet through the opening, a hammer above the anvil provided with means for raising it and adapted to move downwardly, upon release of such means by the operator, to strike a bottle positioned on the anvil and to break it, the anvil having two opposed bottle receiving surfaces formed for satisfactory reception of a bottle, and being mounted to be rotatable on a horizontal axis so as to present either of these two surfaces selectively to the hammer, a handle on the front of the cabinet for rotating the anvil, and means for indexing the anvil in either of its two positions, the means being self-locking and being personally manipulable for release, the cabinet having an opening in its front below the anvil. and an open-top drawer slidable in and through such opening.

3. A bottle breaker comprising a cabinet having an opening in its front adapted to be closed by a movable shutter, an anvil within the casing and disposed horizontally adjacent the opening in position to receive a bottle thrust into the cabinet through the opening, a hammer above the anvil provided with means for raising it and adapted to move downwardly, upon release of such means by the operator, to strike a bottle positioned on the anvil and to break it, the anvil having two opposed bottle receiving surfaces formed for satisfactory reception of a bottle, and being mounted to be rotatable on a horizontal axis so as to present either of these two surfaces selectively to the hammer, a handle on the front of the cabinet for rotating the anvil, and means for indexing the anvil in either of its two positions, the means being self-locking and being personally manipulable for release, the hammer raising means comprising a pull cord arrangement whereof the pull cord passes over pulleys within the casing and has an exposed end outside the casing terminating in a handle mounted so as to be slidable, in guides on the casing.

4. A'bottle breaker comprising a cabinet having an opening in its front adapted to be closed by a movable shutter, an anvil within the casing and disposed horizontally adjacent the opening in position to receive a bottle thrust into the cabinet through the opening, a hammer above the anvil provided with means for raising it and adapted to move downwardly, upon release of such means by the operator, to strike a bottle positioned on the anvil and to break it, the anvil having two opposed bottle receiving surfaces formed for satisfactory reception of a bottle, and being mounted to be rotatable on a horizontal axis so as to present either of these two surfaces selectively to the hammer, a handle on the front of the cabinet for rotating the anvil, and means for indexing the anvil in either of its two positions, the means being self-locking and being personally manipulable for release, rotation of the anvil degrees serving to dump breakage off the anvil into the space below it and to present a clean surface for bottle reception.

5. A bottle breaker comprising a cabinet having an opening in its front adapted to be closed by a movable shutter, an anvil within the casing and disposed horizontally adjacent the opening in position to receive a bottle thrust into the cabinet through the opening, a hammer above the anvil provided with means for raising it and adapted to move downwardly, upon release of such means by the operator, to strike a bottle positioned on the anvil and to break it, the anvil having two opposed bottle receiving surfaces formed for satisfactory reception of a bottle, and being mounted to be rotatable on a horizontal axis so as to present either of these two surfaces selectively to the hammer, a handle on the front of the cabinet for rotating the anvil, and means for indexing the anvil in either of its two positions, the means being self-locking and being personally manipulable for release, rotation of the anvil 180 degrees serving to dump breakage off the anvil into the space below it and to present a clean surface for bottle reception, the cabinet having an opening in its front below the anvil, and an open-top drawer slidable in and through such opening.

WILLIAM LIEB. 

